By Walter Murphy…
Shelter Inn Place mixes hurricane havoc, family dysfunction, and serious themes of loneliness and suicide in a relentlessly broad comedy.
Playwright Henry Feldman’s Shelter Inn Place finds a family trapped in a B&B with a hurricane gathering outside its doors. Unfortunately, the front door is not yet securely locked, and through it enters a cast of unbelievable characters, each with their own issues. With one exception, all are known to the innkeeper; they are his family. The action that follows is familiar and predictable in its recycling of plot, dialogue, and happy ending. There are a few laughs throughout, but the story morphs into a goofy version of “Florida Man” under siege by a hurricane and his family.
Harried innkeeper Frank (Mike Roche) prepares the B&B for a Category 3 hurricane. He is recently divorced, a former professor of physics, and an inveterate people-pleaser. He is visited by his father, George (Martin Revere), who lives nearby and is a wisecracking, grumpy senior with an obsession with suicide.
With each opening of the door, plant detritus is thrown inside to remind us of the approaching hurricane. The next character through the door is a wayward traveler whose GPS has directed her to Pelican, not Pecan, Bed and Breakfast, missing the mark by 200 miles. It turns out she, Dr. Heidi Murphy (Alyssa Simon), is a well-known TV therapist who, the day before, saved a man’s life during her broadcast.
Next to stumble in is Frank’s son, Sam (Sam Bennett), a college student who wants his parents to remarry because his fiancée’s parents won’t allow their daughter—who has just been accepted to Stanford Law School—to marry the child of divorce. Think about that for a moment.
Finally, through airborne plants and what looks like a flying school of fish, emerges Frank’s ex, Mildred (Haley Zale). She left home with the pool boy, Thor, but has returned to help Sam by remarrying Frank. Thor, it turns out, also took all her money and kicked her out of his life.
Feldman’s script creates Category 5 familial dysfunction. Their interactions feel like the beginning of an old joke: Two physicists, a therapist, and an ex-wife walk into a B&B …
As the non-family member—and in her role as “Dr. Heidi—America’s Therapist” on her show—Simon’s Heidi valiantly tries to counsel each family member, offering prudent advice about boundaries and the need to take talk of suicide seriously. Good advice. Then the script calls for elderly George to appear with an oversized hangman’s noose and, in another scene, to stand in water-filled metal containers with a too-short electrical cord just feet from an outlet.
Director Joan Kane moves the story along briskly, alternating physical comedy with moments of tenderness, honesty, and reflection, especially between Frank and George and in George’s thoughts following his wife’s passing. For all the silliness they spout, one can feel their true emotions.
That reprieve from the broad silliness is the saving grace of the play. But, as with so many of the bits, it gets hammered with the need for a joke.
The day before, Dr. Heidi prevented a suicide attempt on her program. She was taking time to recoup from that episode by visiting a B&B. She was also dumped by her partner. In the midst of the family fracas, she learns that the man whose life she saved has died. Devastated, she makes plans to console his family. A later text reveals that he was hit by a bus. Dr. Heidi’s reaction:
“I only kept him alive for a day. … And then ‘splat.’ … But he didn’t kill himself.”
You go Dr. Heidi!
Given that so much of the story includes suicide attempts—and considering the demographics of an audience that may relate to loneliness and despair as part of aging—it is difficult to shift from sadness to silliness during the frantic pace created by the approaching hurricane. Audience reactions to the suicide attempts were muted, while George’s talk of loneliness felt genuinely empathetic.
Intended as a wacky comedy—and it truly is BROAD—Shelter Inn Place addresses serious concerns like suicidal thoughts and the importance of creating boundaries. Those moments of seriousness ultimately provide the play with its most meaningful path toward a happy family and happy ending.
Shelter Inn Place runs through October 4 at Theater Row, 410 W. 42nd St., NYC. Running time: 120 minutes, with one 10-minute intermission.
For tickets and information: https://egoactus.com/plays/shelter-inn-place/
